Frustrated Gardening

We have a large and growing garden here. My wife keeps saying it is going to be smaller next year, but when the next year there is more added. This year we have herb boxes appearing on the decks and raised beds for squash and a new greenhouse. Earlier this spring we decided to spend our tilling dollars on our old JD garden tractor and its tiller. Both predate us on the property and both have been previously rebuilt. The tiller got disassembled and rebuilt with some new parts this year. The tractor got a new carb kit as it had been stalling frequently. We got everything together earlier this month only to discover that the tractor engine needs a complete rebuild. Since that left the garden not tilled we rented a rototiller from Kamloops like we have a last couple years. It did half the garden and broke down. I spent about three hours shovelling yesterday.

Yikes! It sounds like that garden of yours has a life of it!s own! This year I have successfully downgraded!

I am pretty sure I say that same thing every year. It is not the planting that is the problem, or the weeding really, as I have really good equipment, it is the processing. After the 100th jar of pickles and jars of all kinds of things I swear every year it will be smaller. This year I added 4 new growing beds to the greenhouse as we didn't finish it last year, at least 2 more rows to the garden, 7 new fruit trees and 100 asparagus plants. No downgrading here!

I have downgraded although not by choice.

Had to move our garden this year. The previous spot was too low and there was water standing in between the rows the past 2 years. Moving it to a higher spot and making huglekultur raised beds. I expect to only have one ready for planting this year (busy with other projects going on).

I'm pouting because I can't get the NEW gardens tilled up. LOL.

Its one thing I think you'll miss when its gone or lessened.

Garden is four times bigger this year ! lovin it !! It wouldn't seem right to start spring without working in soil and planting ..............and I'm done planting as well ! just before all this rain that we are getting for four days !

It's Monday evening and I spent another large part of the day shovelling. A second rototiller of our own is under discussion and would be useful in a the fall as different crops are harvested. Part of where I shovelled today is a new garden area with a lot of rocks. I took out the rocks which will make it easier to cultivate that area in the future. I still have a day or two of shovelling left.

Our daughter loves to garden and each year talks her dad into more and more areas for planting

This year my hubby has spend the last 2 weekends building me raised garden beds, in our garden spot. The beds are made out of some beauiful cedar and each bed is 10 feet long and 4 ft. wide and 20 inches tall, which is my knee height.

We finished installing the last one last Sunday, took a lot of soil and compost to fill as well each bed has soaker hose in it and it is all on a timer. I have spend the last few days planting up and am really looking forward to gardening this year and many years beyond. I have planting things I never would have. What a guy is all I can say, as he has made my gardening soooo much easier on my knees etc.

Heather

We LOVE having fresh veggies from our garden but it seems to be a never ending chore fixing things up so it works better. This year we wanted to start getting stuff started before the 2nd weekend in June like we did last year. This year wasn't so cold so the ground is actually thawed already YEAH!

We got seeds started in greenhouse (zucchini, 4 types of squash, 2 types of pumpkins, cucumbers, 4 types of cherry tomatoes, 2 types of corn, watermelons, herb containers and some flowers as well). We picked up some small broccoli seedlings we got from the local greenhouse. Well so much for our seeds because the mice took them all!!!! They stole all the bigger seeds and all the little herb and flower seeds they just dug around searching for seeds I guess so its a huge huge mess Then they got our little broccoli plants out in the garden as well and chewed them up. SO frustrating!! Everytime I turn around our 2 new felines have a mouse in their mouths but it seems like maybe we need 20 felines!! Seems the only thing we can grow well is mint and chives because it grows year after year and everything avoids it like the plague so nothing digs in it or eats it LOL

Wish hubby would build me raised garden beds. Had to build mine myself. Added 2 more this spring, but I need MORE SPACE![You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

How tall are those beds Sucellus? 1 foot?

I ask because I'm building mine right now.

Raised beds look so nice. I'm too lazy >.<

Hubby and I built a cedar bed this weekend. It is made to get rid of an abrupt drop off near our house, so the dimensions are not the best for a raised bed, but I will not complain because it is lovely! It tapers to 16 inches deep, and is 16 feet long and 6 to 7 feet wide. I'll have to fill the middle with garlic and other crops that won't need to be dealt with for a while...
We've been lucky enough to get free greenhouse mix, but that may be ending
I went twice to the peat plant yesterday and filled the bed. The darn chickens got into it, as has the cat, so I will be putting a net around it before it is planted...
Like you Fowler, my first garden area was a swamp. Not only did it flood, the weeds grew, like, well, weeds! We will do all raised beds from now on.
The manure pile works well too...

Made a narrow raised bed against the barn two weekends ago. This weekend I filled it with dirt and tomato plants. Two days ago the wind came up and stripped about half the leaves. Yesterday a chunk of wood blew off the barn and flattened several plants.

Should I give up? There was a wildfire here yesterday. They had to evacuate a mile north and west of here. I think my gardens are doomed before I even begin.

Schipperkesue wrote:

Should I give up? There was a wildfire here yesterday. They had to evacuate a mile north and west of here.

Of course! No need to garden! You can just loot food while people are evacuated! Very clever!

.

Wildfire still raging just miles from my home. Consuming many gardens I think. I shall carry out my raids to the south.

.

Schipperkesue wrote:Wildfire still raging just miles from my home. Consuming many gardens I think. I shall carry out my raids to the south.

Be safe Sue.

They say it is contained now, even though the wind is fierce.

Thank you for you concern! And on with the gardening!

I'm finished digging at last. I took out a lot of rocks as I went which will make things easier in the future. My wife planted as I dug. We used potatoes stored from last year that were sprouted so far that the stems were above ground when planted. They are now sporting leaves and I have a great farmer's tan. Now to move on to building a fence.

We finally got our raised beds planted yesterday yeah! All beds except strawberry and raspberrys are covered in plastic tents LOL so not terribly pretty

Today I start on the big garden out back